T-Mobile is excited to partner with HTC to bring our customers the Windows Phone 8X by HTC. As a premium Windows Phone 8 device, the 8X by HTC features a beautiful 4.3” Super LCD HD screen, a powerful dual-core processor and will run on T-Mobile’s fast HSPA+42 network. Customers will enjoy access to Windows Phone’s Live Tiles, an iconic design, immersive studio-quality sound with Beats Audio™ and incredible camera capabilities.

HTC has taken the gloves off their brand new HTC handsets, the HTC 8X and 8S. These brand new Windows Phone 8 smartphones from HTC “boast iconic design, immersive studio-quality sound with Beats Audio and incredible camera capabilities.”

The Windows Phone 8X will come in a variety of colors including California Blue, Graphite Black, Flame Red, and Limelight Yellow and the 8S will arrive in Domino, Fiesta Red, Atlantic Blue, and High Rise Gray.

HTC 8X specs:

4.3″ HD resolution super LCD 2

1.5GHz Snapdragon S4

1GB of RAM

16GB internal storage

1,800mAh battery

8 megapixel rear camera with f/2.0 lens

1080p video capture

2.1 megapixel front-facing camera

Beats Audio

HTC 8S specs:

4.0″ WVGA display

1GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor

512MB of RAM

4GB of storage

Beats Audio

5 megapixel camera with f/2.8

720p video capture

microSD slot

no front facing camera

As of this writing, it appears that both devices will show up on T-Mobile store shelves, as HTC just confirmed from the stage the availabilty of both devices on T-Mobile. We’ve seen the 8S (Accord) appear on T-Mobile’s roadmap so no surprises there, but we welcome the addition of the 8X. HTC appears to be taking a more Samsung-like approach to smartphone availability and dropping the carrier exclusive model.

In the US, the Windows Phone 8X by HTC will be available for a suggested retail price of $199.99 at T-Mobile.

HTC:

The Windows Phone 8X by HTC and the Windows Phone 8S by HTC will be available beginning in November through more than 150 carriers in 50+ countries including AT&T, Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile USA.

Both models are expected to arrive until late October, early November.

Press Release:

HTC AND MICROSOFT UNVEIL FIRST SIGNATURE WINDOWS PHONES

New Windows Phone 8X and 8S by HTC to be available through more than 150 mobile operators globally

NEW YORK, 19th September, 2012 — HTC, a global leader in mobile innovation and design, and Microsoft today unveiled the first signature Windows Phones, the stunning Windows® Phone 8X and 8S by HTC®. The smartphones feature the new Windows Phone 8 operating system and boast iconic design, studio-quality sound with Beats Audio™ and incredible camera capabilities.

“Pairing HTC’s beautiful new Windows Phone 8X and 8S with our brand is a big milestone for both companies,” said Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft. “Together we are offering customers a clear choice and a truly unique experience. I’m thrilled to take our longstanding partnership to the next level.”

“We’ve been inspired by Windows Phone 8 to create new smartphones that give the platform the iconic design and personality it deserves,” said Peter Chou, CEO of HTC Corporation. “Windows Phone has clearly emerged as one of the top mobile ecosystems and is competitive against any other smartphone platform in the world.”

Iconic Design

The only phone with Live Tiles, Windows Phone has a clear, differentiated vision and the consumer experience has been widely recognized as being groundbreaking, innovative and fresh. HTC created the Windows Phone 8X and 8S to blend the virtual and the physical utilizing a three dimensional, pure uni-body design based on the Windows Phone Live Tiles. The Windows Phone 8X and 8S by HTC are perfectly sculpted with a dramatic taper making them feel magically thin in your hand.

Because color is such an integral part of the Windows Phone experience, HTC is bringing bold, sophisticated and adventurous colors in a premium matte finish to these devices. The Windows Phone 8X will come in a variety of colors including California Blue, Graphite Black, Flame Red and Limelight Yellow. The Windows Phone 8S by HTC will be available in Domino, Fiesta Red, Atlantic Blue and High-Rise Gray.

Capture and share your world

For the first time, HTC is introducing a 2.1mp, f/2.0 aperture, 88° ultra-wide angle front-facing camera that allows up to four people and more to be captured at once. It also supports 1080p video capture. The rear camera sports an 8mp CMOS sensor with backside-illumination (BSI) for improved low-light performance, along with an f/2.0 aperture, 28mm lens and a dedicated imaging chip. A physical shutter button makes it quick and easy to capture spontaneous action, even if the phone is locked.

Spectacular Sound with Beats Audio

Exclusively available on HTC smartphones, Beats Audio provides authentic, studio-quality sound that delivers the spirit of the original recording. The Windows Phone 8X by HTC featuring Beats Audio also offers a unique audio amplifier powering the 3.5mm audio jack and the speaker, boosting the audio signal for even better sound no matter if you’re listening to music, playing a game or watching a video.

Brilliant Display

The Windows Phone 8X by HTC features a beautiful, 4.3” HD-resolution super LCD 2 screen protected from everyday bumps and scrapes by lightweight Gorilla® Glass 2, while optical lamination reduces reflections and glare, ensuring you see every detail. The Windows Phone 8S by HTC boasts a bright super LCD 4” screen with Gorilla®Glass, allowing users to see the Windows Phone Live Tiles, and every message and photo, with crystal clarity and sparkling color.

Entertainment

With the Windows Phone 8X and 8S by HTC people can carry their favorite music, movies and photos with them wherever they go. With the Windows Phone Store and Xbox Live, it is easier than ever to enjoy the latest video, music and games on the move.

Availability

The Windows Phone 8X and 8S by HTC will be available beginning in November. Available through more than 150 carriers in 50+ countries, the Windows Phone 8X or 8S by HTC will be available from the world’s top carriers including: United States:AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless. Europe: Orange, O2 Telefonica, MTS, Three UK, T-Mobile, and Vodafone Asia-Pacific: Chunghwa Telecom, Optus, Singapore Telecommunications Ltd (Singtel), Smartone, Telstra and Vodafone Australia.

About HTC

Founded in 1997, HTC Corp. (HTC) is the creator of many award-winning mobile devices and industry firsts. By putting people at the center of everything it does, HTC pushes the boundaries of design and technology to create innovative and personal experiences for consumers around the globe. HTC’s portfolio includes smartphones and tablets powered by HTC Sense®, a multilayered graphical user interface that vastly improves user experience. HTC is listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE: 2498). For more information, please visit www.htc.com.

About David Beren

David is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of TmoNews.com. He considers himself a Jedi Knight, capable of leaping tall buildings in a single bound and a connoisseur of fine cell phones. He has been involved in the wireless industry since 2003 and has been known to swap out phones far too many times in any given year. Should you wish to contact him, you can do so: david@tmonews.com.

I’d be very surprised if it has WiFi calling. T-Mobile can barely keep it working on Android & Blackberry phones. It worked great on the BB9780 and before berries, but it’s been a dicey proposition at best with my HTC Sensation, also noticed folks saying it doesn’t work very well on the HTC One S, or even the Samsung S3. The 8X may get it way down the road, but the possibility of it launching with it is pretty much null.

Wi-Fi calling worked splendidly on my G2 and my parents’ GS2s in the Philippines just two weeks ago…so I don’t know what you’re talking about with this “T-Mobile can barely keep it working on Android” business…

JW

The 8X is verrrrry nice, esp. the blue one, but I’m still longing for a 920.

BTW, T-Mobile? Stock the 920 or kiss me and my family goodbye. Even a red-headed step child has its breaking point.

Sounds like Ebonics to me. More like your parents didn’t know how spell Dante, or in its more bastardized version, literally, Dawnte. Not trying to be mean mate, just giving my input. In any case, it’s not your your fault.
Source: hoodnamesemporium.com

jlw84

…..Coming from an individual who’s name is also hood. “Bonquisha” is one of Sheneneh’s weave-salon
buddies…..

Michael Smith

see, i cant. i just cant lol

Rob

No chance? The whole point of this article was to state that it is coming to T-mobile. Did you even read?

HTC killed it with not offering 32gb, or a SD card slot on the 8X. If the 8S had a Front facing camera, I would get it over the 8X. If the nokia 920 comes to T-mobile I’ll get that instead.

jt

A friend of mine (progam manager at Nok) confirmed that 920 is only on AT&T. T-Mobile will be getting a not yet mentioned model from Nokia later this year, but it’ll be a step down from the 920. Verizon will get a flagship with 41MP camera from them in January.

Todd_the_Hunn

Which is why it is hard to feel to much pity for Nokia even though I love their hardware . How can a company that is teetering on bankruptcy not get its hero phone to every willing carrier .

JT

My friend claimed it’s because T-Mobile didn’t want to pay for the 920. Oh well, I’m hoping Nokia will keep stink it up so MS can buy them out.

WirelessRefugee

That makes sense since T-Mobile is going for the middle of the road and budget crowd. Those people don’t need or want high end devices.

My brother is a good example. He has been using a feature phone and he is a doctor. He only recently took the smartphone plunge. He ended up getting a full retail $180 Windows Phone. While I think the specs are nothing compared to my SGS II, he thinks his Samsung Windows phone — forgot the model name — is really high tech (it is a nice phone, has a 4″ SAMOLED display, which still looks impressive, IMO).

AAAAAAAAAAAA

Speak for yourself. I only want the high end phones. Just because I’m on a budget doesn’t mean I don’t deserve or will splurge for the best device. Also, the HTC isn’t middle or low end in comparison to the Lumia 920; neither is the Galaxy Note II.

Todd_the_Hunn

That was kind of my point . TMO is still getting high end windows phones . Its just not going to be Nokia’s . The HTC 8X is without question a high end windows phone .

Wyn6

You guys need to Tweet, email, and/or Facebook Tmo to let them know we want a myriad of high-end phones not just one. We want choices. People WILL buy them be they Nokia, Samsung, HTC, or whatever. Let ’em know.

JT

Well, I also think Nokia wanted some help financing advertisement. they are hurting at Nokia (San Diego). Moved to smaller building, laidoff a bunch..although my buddy was lucky(or unlucky) enough to not be laid off, his wife was. They probably went the AT&T exclusive route so AT&T will help fund advertisements. He mentioned Nokia are trying get exclusibe partner in Europe too. I told him I thought it was a bad business model. He said it worked for apple, BUT nokia isn’t apple now is it…

BigMixxx

Scary thing about it is that a pureview windows phone might make me think about the possibiity of buying one…

if it ran android, no question…

abc

what is stopping us to buy it unlocked and use it on t-mobile, once the 1900 refarm is done, all the att phones shd work right?

Josh Robert Nay

It should work right now. Just can’t use it on 3G/4G yet :P Once the refarm is done, it will run nicely.

charles4

beautiful phone

jelliottz

Good bye Galaxy Nexus. Your successor is on its way.

fixxmyhead

what does this do that the galaxy nexus doesnt? as far as i know windows phones have limitations

rfgenerator

It apparently does not have a user replaceable battery, which eliminates it from consideration. Non only can you not swap the battery out if you are going to be away from a charger for a long time, but as the phone ages your battery life is going to diminish and there isn’t anything you can do about it.

21stNow

Not knocking your thoughts here but as far as the age, how long are you going to use the phone anyway? You may use yours longer than I use mine but age of the battery isn’t one of my concerns.

The HTC radar does not have a “user replaceable” battery but you can do it in two minutes with a torx screwdriver.

Lex

“We’ve seen the 8S (Accord) appear on T-Mobile’s roadmap so no surprises there, but we welcome the addition of the 8X.” The linked article you wrote says the Accord is the 8X, i’m just confused because I haven’t read anything yet about the 8S being on T-Mobile

Both phones will be on T-Mobile, the earlier intel shows the Accord, which we know as the 8S I believe, which contradicts earlier info. I’m not 100%, but both phones will be available. There’s been confusing intel online as to which is which, all that matters is they are both coming!

That was actually my original choice but I want something very loud in color. I’ve never had a red smart phone before lol

Whiskers

No removable battery==Fail.

Soun Maokhamphiou

Removable battery is over rated. I guess if you are a business person and travel allot then you need one from the lack of charging. But of all the phones I have owned, I never had to remove the battery, unless the phone froze… but then again, that just means the phone is crappy and we need removable batteries to make up for the crappy phone that freezes.

Whiskers

Over rated , well IF my HTC HD2 , HTC HD7 Windows phones did’nt have the removable battery option i would be screwed !
What are you going to do when you need to do a hard reset and you can’t do it if you can’t remove the battery . Or lets just say your battery is shot and you need a new one , now you have to pay a tech to replace it when you can simply pop the back cover off and put a new one in yourself if that option is available.
So your calling HTC crappy phones but are raving about this HTC phone, please go smoke another one.

Soun Maokhamphiou

I never raved about the HTC phone nor did I have any dislike for it, but I can see where my previous comment can be taken as that. Let me clarify my stance on this. Your statement suggests that having a removable battery gives the user the benefit of being able to hard reset a mobile phone when the software freezes up correct?

My logic is that your statement is already an acknowledgement that you expect the phone to experience a state where it will freeze up before even purchasing the phone. It then leads me to the assumption that you also acknowledge that it is such a common problem on that phone that you MUST have this removable battery to compensate for the unstable modified operating system which exists on the phone, in this case the HTC HD2 & HTC HD7.

So I retract my statement regarding phones with removable batteries are crappy and now say that those who buy phones with removable batteries for the purpose you mentioned is insane…

As far as the issue with the battery being shot, fortunately for me, I have a 2 year old phone that has never required a battery replacement and still holds its charge well. I can go through the whole day without recharging until it is bed time. I do light gaming, lots of web surfing, check work and personal email consistently, facebook, etc…oh… and its operating system has never frozen up on me…

Limelight yellow? Or California blue? Decisions, decisions. HTC was so smart to actually offer colors…that’s what people want, and that’s what ALWAYS catches a younger consumer’s eye first. It’s an easy way to get the younger users interested.

*Sniff Sniff* I just seen both of them. T-Mobile when I wanna leave you, you do beautiful stuff like this, & that’s why I’ve been with you for 9+ years. You keep giving me all of this enticing beautiful technology, & how can I resist. I mean, we got the HTC One S, Samsung Galaxy SII, Samsung Galaxy SIII, Samsung Galaxy Note, the Note II. I mean I can’t freakin breathe right now, what is air? & I feel like I can FINALLY transition from Android to Windows Phone now. I never wanted to switch because all our Windows phone’s were so basic, & even if you’re not super tech geek’d out, you never really wanna downgrade when you’re used to soo much. But this has a 8 megapixel camera w/ a camera shutter button (my One S doesn’t have & I miss), same 16GB storage (Which I don’t mind, because I stream alot, & now we even have unlimited data), It’s made by HTC, it has the same size screen as am HTC One S, it has beats by dre audio, & it has a 2.1 megapixel front facing camera, that records 1080p, and a 88-degree lens for wield field view. & it’s one in blue. T-Mobile is raping the hell out of my pockets, & I don’t even care no more. Plus it comes out November, my birthday month.

On another site (Phonescoope) it seems to say that the AT&T version AND the T-Mobile version will have HSPA+ and LTE. If this is true , would this be the first phone officially offered by T-Mobile with LTE?

It had better support LTE on AWS or it is useless. I don’t get the impression that the 920 would even if it is bought unlocked. If the 8X doesn’t do it, then the only phone that looks like it will do HSPA+ and LTE on T-Mobile is the iPhone 5. This disgusts me.

theking_13

The iPhone 5, or any iPhone for that matter, won’t do 3G in most areas anyways.

I am not sure which locations still haven’t had the refarm completed, but in Birmingham it is live. I don’t have an iPhone and don’t want one, but if it ends up being the only flagship device with support for the refarmed HSPA+ AND the AWS LTE coming next year, that would just be sad.

rob

Damn its about time T-Mobile has more than one or two high end phones for the year! 8X, GNote II, maybe the One X+ still, and that one Samsung WP8 high end phone we’re supposed to get. not counting the One s, GS III, or GNote already available.

noah

The one x+ is looking more unlikely now. But now that tmo is getting the GNote 2. Who cares!

Philosoraptor

Thank you sweet baby Jesus! Selling my One S and getting one for me and my wife!

they look like Lumias .. which isn’t bad .. which one is that in the picture though? the 8S or the 8X? [edit] nevermind the 8S has the dual color grip so it’s the 8S.

Matthew Mueller

The use of bold colors is a smart move by Microsoft. I thought it was going to be exclusive to Nokia, but now that I see this, I believe that Microsoft is behind the push for color. It’s about time we see some phones that can better reflect individual personality and taste. I would have expected Apple to initiate this move.

Matthew Mueller

Okay. Just realizing that Samsung’s Galaxy Note II has different colors on the back as well, but they are HORRIBLE colors!

21stNow

But the colors you saw for the Note II are cases. You can opt not to have those, and other manufacturers will probably make cases like that in other colors.

i guess TMO is still waiting on its first LTE phone .. they said it would run on HSPA 42 not LTE.

21stNow

I think that it’s too early for an LTE phone on T-Mobile. The LTE network is estimated to go live in 2013. With no official date (of January X, 2013), November 2012 would be too early to release the phone. Besides, you know T-Mobile is going to charge more for LTE phones just because they are LTE phones. It will be hard for them to justify a high price if there is no LTE network to run them on.

If you’re talking about having the antenna there, but “deactivated” by software, it’s possible, I guess. I just don’t think that T-Mobile is going to look out for the consumer in this way. If you have a phone that is future-proof now, you’re less likely to buy a new phone next year. T-Mobile wants to keep you hooked into signing new contracts/paying of EIPs so that you will stay with them.

PHONE_FREAK

This is cool, but I hope this doesn’t mean that T-mobile isn’t getting the Nokia 920.

Only 16Gb of space with no expandable memory card support. 4.3″ screen is smallish compared to the only other high end phone S3. Probably locked battery compartment. Damn, this is just not a “high end” phone. Hurray for a choice of a new OS but nah, pass.

Napster87

glad they’re bringing high end phones to tmo. it definitely looks a lot like the nokia lumia 900 but since nokia isn’t bringing that to tmobile, they can’t really complain that another OEM is giving the people what they want since they aren’t.

GinaDee

The Lumia looks cool and their mapping software is great sans the poor integration with WP7 but hopefully WP8 fixes this.

My only issue with the Lumia is that it appears Nokia is using the same shell as the Lumia 900. I used the Lumia 900 on AT&T and the thing was really heavy, bulky with too much bezel which made it hard to navigate one handed. The phone would keep falling out of my hands or wouldn’t register my key strokes near the screen corners.

The best thing about the Lumia are the cool color options and the camera (pure view).

mreveryphone

Windows phone fans finally have a contender! Nice job htc

The Dude

I can’t wait for the unboxing video !!! :p

Noe

Hey does anybody know what happened with the Htc One X+, and the 5inch phablet Htc DIX?

So they drop the One X for this? Comeon. Mediocre specs if it were an Android phone. Run of the mill processor, run of the mill smaller screen size (these days), and it’s saddled with Windows Phone. You can call it “8” all you want, to the typical consumer Windows Phone is Windows Phone as this looks the same as all of the others on the home screen. Watch them spend ALL of their effort hyping it up now to the max only to find out it still only gets a 5% marketshare compared to Android and iOS.

Elliott Hylton

Hmmm it actually doesn’t specify if the device will have LTE or not it just says that it will be compatible with TMo HSPA+ network. I find it hard to believe that HTC will make a separate phone for all 3 carriers instead of making just one with all the bands compatible. I think it may end up coming with LTE for tmobile but they just wont advertise very much because of the marketing conflicts.

Deceptivesemiles

Sheesh, both great devices. If I wanted to leave Android, these would make me do it. Only thing that ppl have to figure out is do that what expandable memory or a ffc

GinaDee

I’d start to get used to Cloud storage. MSFT has been giving 7GB of free storage using Sky Drive. Think Drop Box but better and more flexible. Sky Drive makes storing and sharing MSFT Office Docs a snap too.

For media I’d only store the stuff you really like and just stream the rest. With the new unlimited plans you can stream as much as you like. Spotify for me is awesome. I use many GB’d per month streaming alone.

carloslacend

good device. My only problem is the screen size. they should do all the high-end devices with screen 4.5 “at least. 4.3” is it’s something small. but congrats to wp fans. This is a great device

WirelessRefugee

Good looking phone. I take it we won’t see Apple suing HTC for making phones that look like the iPhone. :)

Fish

Questions:

-Is 1800mah battery good for a phone with a processor like that? Why not a 2100mah? I don’t know much about batteries.

-I see Microsoft is in cahoots with HTC on this phone being flagship for Microsoft as well, is this correct? So will it be vanilla wp8 or will that sense crap be installed?

-Is that $199 price tag with a 2 year contract? Because the MS surface tablets are turning out to be cheaper than expected and it would be great if I could get a tablet and phone for what I thought I would spend.

I’m definitely thinking of porting over to win8 from android.

Wyn6

– Windows Phone manages battery life very well in general, so 1800mh battery should be just fine.

– MS did work closely on the development of these devices just as they did with Nokia. OEMs are not allowed to skin Windows Phone, with the possible exception of Nokia. So, Sense, nor TouchWiz will appear on any WP devices.

– If the phone is $199 that’s certainly with a two year contract. The Surface most likely will not be that cheap even an RT version. And, as they’re allegedly only shipping with WiFi, there will be no subsidies on contract. This, of course doesn’t preclude an Xbox subscription. The RT will most likely start around $399 and the Pro maybe $599. That’s my speculation based off of what Balmer said and current market prices for tablets.

Nice! Can’t wait. I sold my Radar 4G and am waiting for the next replacement. I’m using an S II now which is nice but I also like Windows Phone. I’m glad T-Mo is getting some new phones!

carcomptoy

I cannot get over how inane HTC is being by still insisting a flagship phone only have 16GB of storage and no expandable storage option! Don’t give me the cloud storage BS because if you’re on a plane (especially for an international flight), you’re not going to be streaming music and movies from SkyDrive at a sane rate.

If I were in the market for a WP8 phone, I would definitely choose the Lumia 920 simply for the expandable memory storage. But then there’s also that astounding PureView low-light sensitivity and video OIS.

And if I were Nokia, I would be a little bit more than miffed that HTC got to be the flag-bearer for WP8…doesn’t really make sense when Microsoft practically bailed out Nokia.

Garrett

The Lumia 920 does not have expandable storage. It does come with 32gb though.

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